Your evaluation plan should address questions related to both process (i.e., program operations, implementation, and service delivery) and outcomes (the ultimate impact of your intervention).
A process evaluation monitors and measures your activities and operations. It addresses such issues as consistency between your activities and goals, whether activities reached the appropriate target audience(s), the effectiveness of your management, use of program resources, and how your group functioned.
Process evaluation questions may include the following:
- Were you able to involve the members and sectors of the community that you intended to involve at each step of the way? In what ways were they involved?
- Did you conduct an assessment of the situation in the way you planned? Did it give you the information you needed?
- How successful was your group in selecting and implementing appropriate strategies? Were these the “right” strategies, given the intervening variables you identified?
- Were staff and/or volunteers the right people for the jobs, and were they oriented and trained before they started?
- Was your outreach successful in engaging those from the groups you intended to engage? Were you able to recruit the number and type of participants needed?
- Did you structure the program as planned? Did you use the methods you intended? Did you arrange the amount and intensity of services, other activities, or conditions as intended?
- Did you conduct the evaluation as planned?
- Did you complete or start each element in the time you planned for it? Did you complete key milestones or accomplishments as planned?
Tool
Prevention Planning